Will HTC be Google's preferred partner?

An anonymous GSMArena tipster with connections to "a very reliable source within HTC" says a rumoured 5-inch phablet, often referred to as the HTC One X 5 or Droid Incredible X, will be Google's latest "pure Android" handset.

According to the source, the device will run on Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2 and bring improvements to Project Butter (which makes Android more fluid), more lock screen options, and additional minor improvements.

Not until Key Lime Pie?

However, this would be a surprise. In the past we've only seen Google-branded handsets like the Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S, and Nexus 7 arrive alongside landmark Android updates.

Armed with that knowledge, we'd expected the next Nexus phone to go hand-in-hand with the launch of Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie, rather than a Jelly Bean tweak.

In terms of specs, the tipster says the first Nexus phablet will have a 1080p screen, a Snapdragon S4 chipset, and 12-megapixel and 2-megapixel cameras.

The report also mentions a large 2,500mAh battery, which the device would surely need if the holy grail of a 1080p screen did turn out to be the headline feature.

All for one or one for all?

Up until now reports have hopped between the major Android manufacturers - Samsung, Motorola, LG and HTC - as potential partners for Google's next Nexus phone.

In addition, there's also been speculation that multiple Google-branded devices will welcome Key Lime Pie into the fold. Monday's reports, although interesting, do little to clarify the situation.

HTC handsets pioneered the early versions of Android. The beloved T-Mobile G1 was the first ever Android phone, while the ill-fated Google Nexus One, which introduced Android 2.0, was also built by the Taiwanese company.

Will Google, which has cosied up to Samsung for its Nexus phones in the last couple of years, go back to its oldest Android hermano for the next big hardware launch?